A perennial herb cultivated historically as a vegetable in Taiwan and Japan (Morita et al., 1993). Lin et al. (1996) reported that it has anti-inflammatory and free radical scavenging activities.

Reported preventive effect of growth retardation. This growth retardation by inclusion of 8% mineral oil in a fat-free diet causes severe growth retardation in rats, found to be primarily due to the reduction in nutrient intake, could be prevented by the concurrent inclusion of 10% water-insoluble dietary fiber [gobo fiber] prepared from Arctium lappa Linne. Suggested is ability of Arctium lappa to inhibit mineral oil absorption from the intestinal lumen (Morita et al., 1993).